Comparison between Cryopreserved and Dehydrated Human Amniotic Membrane Graft in Treating Challenging Cases with Macular Hole and Macular Hole Retinal Detachment

PURPOSE: To evaluate the surgical outcomes of cryopreserved and dehydrated human amniotic membrane (hAM) graft transplantation for macular hole (MH) and macular hole retinal detachment (MHRD) repair. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective, interventional case series was conducted in two hospitals. Two types of hAM grafts, namely, the dehydrated form (AmnioGen, HCT Regenerative, Taiwan) and the cryopreserved form (AmnioGraft, Bio-Tissue, Miami, FL), were consecutively used in MH surgeries. Anatomical and functional outcomes between the 2 types of hAM grafts were compared. RESULTS: Seventeen patients (mean age: 62.1 ± 10.0 years, 9 (52.9%) males) were enrolled. Of them, 11 patients had persistent MH, 3 had MH without prior surgery, and 3 had MHRD. A cryopreserved hAM graft was used in 10 patients, and a dehydrated hAM graft was used in 8 patients. One patient used a cryopreserved hAM in the first MH surgery and a dehydrated hAM in the second surgery for extramacular hole with retinal detachment. After a 6-month follow-up, 13 (76.5%) patients had sealed MHs. The average visual acuity (VA) of cases with sealed MHs improved from 1.38 ± 0.62 to 1.12 ± 0.47 logMAR (p=0.03). In the other 4 cases with persistent MH, 3 had graft dislocation and 1 had a reopened MH with graft contraction. There were no significant differences in closure rate (80.00% vs. 71.43%, p=0.68) or VA improvement (0.19 ± 0.37 logMAR vs. 0.15 ± 0.41 logMAR, p=0.85) between the 2 kinds of hAM graft. CONCLUSION: This preliminary case series showed that both cryopreserved hAM and dehydrated hAM are feasible alternative grafts for either persistent or recurrent MH. Both approaches have similar anatomical and functional outcomes.